A Jar + White Beans + Cotton Balls = FUN!

I am back with something fun we have been doing in my daycare. My kids are really into bugs and plants.. so I decided that we would make our own plants. As I read about the easiest way to do this online... I found all I needed was a jar, a bean, cotton balls, and water. Of course I had all of these stuff. The couple of articles that I read used Lima Beans.. but I didn't have any of those... So I went for the dried white beans hoping that they would work... 

The kids were so excited. Above you can see my little monkey shaking his glass jar after he has stuffed it full with cotton balls. I let them play with it for a bit because what they ALL really wanted to do was stuff it full, take it out, stuff it full, take it out- you get my drift. Finally, I slowly showed them what we would be doing by using the one I was 'helping' my 6th month old make. 

You can see their hands above putting their white beans in their cotton balls. They had a lot of fun pushing them down the sides. It varied how many each child put in their jar... there is one with two, five, and six. I didn't really give any restrictions- they told me when they were done. 

The next thing we did was water it. This, my friends, was hard for me. Sometimes I tend to be a control freak and.. DO TOO MUCH for these little guys. I am trying to learn to back off and allow them to have more control. Eventually I want my kids to pour their own drinks at lunch- but I really just don't think they are there yet. :) But I did let them pour the water into their jars- and honestly, they did awesome. I think only one little one made a mess... which of course is so easy to wipe right up! :) So they put enough water in their jars to soak the cotton balls up. 

Next, we put the jars in my window sill in the kitchen. The left one looks like it has something coming out of it- it does not... that is a leaf coming from a plant that it in my window sill. So we have had these sitting here for about two weeks .. and we watch them daily. The kids ask me for the plants so they can look at them. They really love them. We take them outside somedays so they can get extra son. The jar on the right was the only one that had sprouted up until about three days ago. Her plant started early and looks so great. 

Tonight I re-did our playroom/school room and I moved our plants to the window sill in there. I am not sure how long it will last as the kids can absolutely reach up there to grab it. It is that control thing again...

 Above you will see the plant that I talked about previously. Today, about two weeks later, her plant has many sprouts in it. When my son and I came home today it looked so much different- little Kaya is going to be so excited to see her plant on Monday. 

This is my little man's.. it FINALLY popped out through the cotton balls today! :) He will be so thrilled to see it in the morning... :) 

We really had so much fun making these. I went to Michael's today and purchased a few 'cheap' things that we are going to use to continue our unit on plants... I am so excited to dig deeper. Even though I have two toddler girls and only one toddler boy- the girls are just as into getting dirty outside in the garden, looking at worms and roly ploys, playing with cars and trains... as my little man is. It is so great! 

I am so blessed to have this job.  

Guest Post--Keeping it Simple Sunday

Today you can find Big Sister from Natural-Nesters guest posting over at Finding My Way Through Texas. 

Head over to check out her series KISS, and see how Cassey from Natural-Nesters is working at Keeping It Simple in such a busy life!! 

Vacation Preparation: What's your routine!?!

So....next week, I Brittany, aka Little Sis will be gone on vacation! We have planned a week to stay in Destin, Fl. right on the beach in a house with 6 of our friends.  It will be three married couples and one single guy and girl! They are friends that we went to college with and most of which have moved from Abilene and back around the metroplex! We saw them back in January and decided we should all take a vacation together! I am so pumped that this all worked out! You know how sometimes you can talk and dream about something and it never happens...well this is FREAKING HAPPENING!! 


Haha I am very excited to get to spend a week on the beach! Getting my sun on, eating lots of food, cooking with friends, going on fun adventures together, or out at night, it will be a blast! 


My best friend and I were talking about how vacations are so good for the person.  Let me explain...you see we have been stoked for a long time, but especially these past few weeks, I have been filled with joy over getting away and to the beach! We figured that the anticipation is almost as good as going on the actual trip! We have talked a lot about the trip, and come up with ideas, and talked about bathing suits, and shopped, it has been so much fun, and I have seriously been so happy the past few weeks! (even more so than usual :-) and working out a lot more because course I gotta look good in that bathing suit! 


Anyways, just wanted to share a few of the things I have been doing to prepare for my beach vacation with you. 

1) Day Dreaming....a lot! 

I have been thinking of having coffee on the beach in the mornings, and margarita's on the beach in the evening.  About sitting around a nicely cooked dinner table with my friends and chatting about the depths of life.  And dreaming about the nice tan I'm going to come home with. 

2) Shopping

For weeks I shopped online for the perfect bathing suit, then I had to talk my husband into letting me get the bathing suit :-) Here's a pic of the one I got....I may not look like a model in it, but I love it! 

Then the past couple of nights I have gone with my husband and my friend to get beachy things.  New bathing suit cover up, cute beach hat, tanning lotion, beach umbrellas, husband's new shorts, and other randoms! 

3) Working Out

Normally I do Turbo Fire for my workouts, (you can read about what that is on our WLW #2) but, one day my husband randomly decided to try the Anytime Fitness 1 week Free Trial.  Then he talked me into signing up. :-) We both normally work out a lot and used to have a membership at a great gym, but our finances changed, so we had to drop it.  But, since he had just gotten a new job a gym membership could fit into our budget.  So I got my butt to work, and I started really trying to eat better.  Since that WLW seen above I have lost 12 lbs.  Trying to look good in my new bathing suit :-)

  

4) Getting My Tan On

I got started as soon as the pool at my university opened for the summer season! My friend and I will spend a couple of hours a week out there.  Of course I work until 5pm, and it closes at 6pm, so I only go in short increments each time.  That is probably good for me though, because I have skin that will definitely burn.  So I have played it smart and gone in small amounts of time and I have done well getting a base tan without getting burned! 

 5) Getting Organized

I so did this....I mean made folders for our trip! haha I know it sounds crazy, but since we are in two separate cars I made folders with ideas of things to do and places to eat (including menus from those places) for each car.  I talked to people who had been to Destin, and got ideas from them and went ahead and printed info for those places out.  I also included our beach house security code and address for everyone! I know they will appreciate my crazy organization and planning skills lol or at least I hope they will :-) 

6) Made Some Road Trip Jams

Today my friend whose going on the trip came up to my work and we spent some time burning some cds from my computer! I burned two sets of these babies! haha You know so that we could have one set in each car! Let me share the playlist from my favorite cd with you.  It's the 90's cd!! I love 90's music...you know the boy bands and spice girls. This will definitely be a fun one to sing to!

My Everything--98 Degrees

Dirty Pop--'N Sync

Cry Me A River--Justin Timberlake

Sexy Back--Justin Timberlake

This I promise you--Nsync

Leavin'--Jesse McCartney

The Hardest Thing--98º 

Leave (Get Out)--JoJo

Over My Head (Cable Car)--The Fray

How To Save A Life --The Fray

Over & Over Again--Tim McGraw Feat. Nelly

Summer Girls--LFO

Say You'll Be There--Spice Girls

wannabe--Spice Girls

Dirty Little Secret--The All-American Rejects

Gives You Hell--All-American Rejects

Hand In My Pocket--Alanis Morissette

Head Over Feet--Alanis Morissette

Ironic--Alanis Morissette

I'm a Lover--Alanis Morissette

Swing Swing Swing--The All-American Rejects

7) Packed

Well....I haven't actually done this part yet.  But I will do it tonight, right after I get all of my stuff organized. I do have a feeling that I really might look like this girl though, I want to take so much, even though I know I don't need to lol But I gotta have my options right.   I also have to realize that there are eight of us in two pretty small cars too, so we have to have room lol We will see how this works out! 

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed my list of to-do's and gotta-do's! :-) 

I will miss you all next week though! Don't worry I will be including my top favs in next week's Naturally-Nifty party so be sure to stop by on Tuesday and see the features and join the party!! I will update yall with all the fantastic photos that I take from the trip in a few weeks! 

Destin here we come! 

5K!

I did it! I ran my first race since having my son! 

Not only did I do it... I did it pushing a stroller with my little man in it! 

I am so proud of ME! 

I was afraid I wouldn't do it because I didn't really want to go alone... but I am becoming more and more content doing these kinds of things alone. I got up with the husband this morning as he got ready for work and I began to get ready for the 5K. Of course Little Man slept later than he ever does and I had to wake his sweet self up to get out of the house on time. We drove about 45 minutes and we were there. Today we ran in a Memorial Day 5K... so more close to home than others. 

I started to get intimidated for a few reasons:

1. I seemed to be the only one alone... but luckily my two year old kept me preoccupied until start time... so I didn't feel like a complete loser with no friends... :) 

2. I slowly started to realize I was the only person with a stroller... so the only person required to start at the back.

3. As we neared the start, I also realized.... There are not many people doing this run.. OMG! I am going to be the last person! 

I am not a fast runner... so I was a little intimated and embarrassed that I was going to be the last one. I started to doubt myself... but luckily Little Sis was supporting me pretty good via text over that situation. Thanks sis! 

Start Time! 

The boy and I took off... I surprised myself.. I stayed around a 5.30 the whole time. THIS made me so proud. It is quite challenging to get a good pace with the stroller... We ran one full mile solid, going good.. The second mile had about four hills.. we ran one. The other three I walked, quickly, up them.. So I walked for about 30 seconds three times... and then we kept going... We came through the finish line in less than 40 minutes which made me proud. Though it was a 5K, in all actuality it was 3.4 miles.. Thank you, new watch! :) 

I was happy and proud. I was continually passing people up during the race... I felt great. I can't wait to do another one! My little man loved his medal... In honor of Memorial Day the 'medals' they gave out were dog tags... Little man loved it and played with it for a very long time! 

-Big Sis

Also don't forget to stop by and link up to the Natually-Nifty Party!! It's open until Friday night at midnight!! 

WLW #11

Do you have bad weeks? I haven't had a bad week... but I would be lying to you if I came here and pretended like I have been on track. I have had a bad holiday weekend... plain and simple. I am so happy that I still got up and ran the 5K that I had signed up for... but sometimes it is so hard to shake the fact that I am causing myself to fail momentarily... I would love to hear about your bad moments, days, weeks and how you pick yourself back up again and start...

So this week we want to hear from you all! Let us know what you do to get past a bad weekend, or to overcome holiday times without losing all sense of self-control and accomplishment.  Or share how you get yourself back in the game after messing up when you have been doing so great!

TIP OF THE DAY: 

Yesterday I pinned a story of Pinterest of this girl who had been pretty active in HS, then in college gained a lot of weight, and when she realized how out of shape she had gotten, she started to change things.  It wasn't an over-night change, but a steady change with lots of ups and downs over a course of several years before she really changed her lifestyle.  But you can see before and after pics and read about what she's doing now and it is amazing.  

One tip I got from reading her story though is to focus more on lifting weights.  Most of the time I tend to do about 85% of my workout as cardio, and only 15% on weights or strength building.  I am going to start doing more 50/50 though, and spending more time lifting.  She said not only does it burn calories, but it is also very toning.  And to push yourself while doing it....your last few reps should be VERY hard.  And you should only take about 30-60 breaks between so that you can continue burning.  Also, I do 3 times of 15 reps.  Anyways, I'll keep you updated as I start this new type of workout.  

A new thing we are starting this week with Weightloss Wednesday is that we will be pinning fitness/workout stuff to our new "Fitness Motivation" board on Pinterest! Follow us there to get motivated!!

Here's our stats for this week: 

WLW Stats for BIG SIS:(Cassey)

Starting Weight: 210

Wed. 3/21: -13lbs total 

Wed. 4/3: -16lbs total

Wed. 4/10: -22lbs total

Wed. 4/17: -25lbs total

Wed. 4/25: -29lbs total

Wed. 5/2: -32lbs total

Wed. 5/9: -34lbs total  

Wed.5/16: -34lbs total

Wed. 5/23: -37lbs total

Wed. 5/30: -36lbs total

WLW Stats for LITTLE SIS: (Brittany)

Starting Weight: 170

Wed.3/28: -3lbs total

Wed. 4/10: -6.5lbs total

Wed. 4/17: -7.5lbs total

Wed. 4/25: -7.5lbs total

Wed. 5/2: -8.5lbs total

Wed. 5/9: -10.5lbs total 

Wed.5/16: -10.5lbs total

Wed. 5/23: -10.5lbs total

Wed. 5/30: -12lbs total 

Naturally-Nifty #16

It seems the the link ups are getting better and better every week. Thank you so much to those of you that are dedicated to linking up to our party each week. We hope you will continue to do so and to spread the word to your other blogging friends. I can't tell you how many of these ideas that I use or modify... I love coming here each week/day and looking through what has been shared! Thank you so much. 

Of course first.. we want to share some of our favorites of this week for you... 

1. Hani over at Craftionary shared with us some awesome ideas for Father's Day... and not only are they awesome-- there are free printables. Who doesn't love FREE? I know that I do. Running a daycare can get quite expensive so I love seeing free items that are linked up. I especially love the mustache coffee cup .. I think that is going to be a definite to-do for our Father's during daycare. I also love the letter/poem using candy. I recently saw that on pinterest and I pinned it to use for sure. Thanks Hani for linking up awesome ideas for Father's Day... you always link up such fun things!

2. Shannah over at Just Us Four shared a very yummy looking recipe. It is funny because a few days ago I posted on Facebook asking friends for a quick, simple recipe with chicken. I wanted to do something I do not normally do... but something that was yummy. Take a look at her Step-by-Step directions to making Mustard Chicken. I wish I was eating at her house... right now. The green beans look fresh out of the garden. YUMMY! This recipe is going to be a must in my home this week! Thanks for sharing.

3. Now this is a beauty. You have to check out this redo over at J House Tawk. She took an old cabinet and turned it into a show cabinet. I especially love the fact that you can have the doors on it to hide the shoes. Shoes, shoes, shoes... who doesn't have too many shoes... and that end up in places they do not need to be? This was very creative, fun, and I love the colors. Thank you for sharing with us. 

Thanks so much to everyone that linked up! And remember as part of being featured, we will be pinning these great posts to our Pinterest boards, check it out! 

We want to see any and everything that you are up to! 

From Home makeovers, craft projects, DIY, recipes, tips, kids games or crafts, or anything else you are up to!!

Just Remember....

Please SUBSCRIBE to our blog on the left sidebar!

Also, we have moved our Naturally-Nifty Party Buttons to the top tab, so take one of those and put it on your blog or add us to your linky parties tab on your blog!

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The Tension...when home is no long your HOME!

So it has been a long time since I have seen my family.  

Well so that you are not confused, let me define family for you---my parents, grandmother, nieces and nephew that live back at home.

Then once I use the word home I guess there needs to be another definition---when I refer to home, I am referring to the place where I grew up, and my mother and most of my family are at. 

Then again, when I am "home," I also refer to Abilene, which is where I have lived for the past five years as my home.  

And then again, my husband, whom obviously I live with in Abilene, is also my family. 

Do you see what I mean by The TENSION! 

I am at a place in life where it is really hard to define home, and my family.
I will tell you this though, as much as I love my life and my home here in Abilene with my sweet husband of two and a half years, I also can get very homesick for my "home" that I grew up in.  And I desperately miss all of my family there!


Then, I also have this tension of how to use my time off from work.
You see, being married, I enjoy a little vacation or two with my husband, and he enjoys it too!
Plus we really enjoy going on mission trips together with our church.  This year we are even  leading a trip.
Then there is going to see our family, which I always want to do, and hate only having a short weekend for that.

So where is the balance.....? 

How do I decide where to put my vacation time? 

There is one blessing that I know not all of you have.....my parents and my in-laws live about 20minutes from each other! Which is actually such a blessing.  Although we do have to split the time when we go home, at least we don't have to plan one trip to see my family and one trip to see his, we can spend time with all of them when we go visit.

Still though, this is a very hard situation.....surely some of you understand this or have felt this :-)


It's just a hard place to be in.....I have been married for right at two and a half years, and still I am learning to get used to the tension of where my home is, and how to spend my vacation time while pleasing my husband and not missing time with our families.

This is such a random post, but I really felt like maybe a few of you could understand this! Let me know if you totally understand and feel this same tension sometimes! 

SIDENOTE: This is not a complaint :-) Just wonderings in my heart as I am finally being able to head back to my families house to visit for a short two days this weekend! I have missed them dearly and cannot wait to see them! :-) 

Don't forget to Link Up to the Naturally-Nifty Party!